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118-563: Prior to the arrival of European settlers in the 18th century, the Anacostia River was a fast-flowing and relatively silt-free river with very few mudflats or marshes. White settlers cleared much of the surrounding forest for farmland, however, and extensive soil erosion led to a heavy load of silt and effluent in the Anacostia. In 1805, local landowner Benjamin Stoddert built a wooden bridge over

236-402: A $ 111.5 million PILOT bond would be used to improve Kingman Island and three other city parks. As of mid-2009, extensive improvements had been made. The two islands had about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) of trails, and the wooden footbridge connecting Kingman Island to the shore had been rebuilt. A square pier was built in the center of the footbridge connecting Heritage and Kingman islands, providing

354-613: A $ 9 million environmental education center on Kingman Island. Williams proposed building the center as part of the Anacostia Waterfront Initiative , a multibillion-dollar plan to restore the river and economically develop the neighborhoods around it. Studios Architecture was chosen from among 10 firms to design the green building , which would extend out over the river, include a rooftop plant nursery, and use solar energy for heat. Local and national environmental groups also pledged their assistance. Williams proposed turning

472-603: A columnist. In 2018, Khashoggi was murdered by Saudi agents in Istanbul . In October 2023, the Post announced it would cut 240 jobs across the organization by offering voluntary separation packages to employees. In a staff-wide email announcing the job cuts, interim CEO Patty Stonesifer wrote, "Our prior projections for traffic, subscriptions and advertising growth for the past two years — and into 2024 — have been overly optimistic". The Post has lost around 500,000 subscribers since

590-504: A dam across the Anacostia River at Massachusetts Avenue SE or at Benning Bridge to form a large lake for fishing and recreational boating. The commission also proposed using dredged material to build islands within the lake. The Washington Post reported in July 1914 that Congress had approved the plan for a dam on the river at Massachusetts Avenue SE. By 1916, the Corps of Engineers was still planning

708-537: A dam, with access to the 9-foot (2.7 m) deep lake behind it controlled by locks . The Corps also planned to create several large islands in the lake and planned to replace Benning Bridge with a drawbridge to accommodate cargo ship traffic through the lake. The firm of Sanford and Brooks began the dredging in January 1903, at which time the Army Corps of Engineers began surveying the surrounding land to determine whether

826-693: A far-flung merchant marine by using convoys or patrolling the North American coast. Instead, he concluded that the best way to defeat the French campaign against American shipping was by offensive operations in the Caribbean , where most of the French cruisers were based. Thus at the very outset of the conflict, the Department of the Navy adopted a policy of going to the source of the enemy's strength. American successes during

944-485: A former Democratic congressman from Ohio. To promote the newspaper, the new owners requested the leader of the United States Marine Band , John Philip Sousa , to compose a march for the newspaper's essay contest awards ceremony. Sousa composed " The Washington Post ". It became the standard music to accompany the two-step, a late 19th-century dance craze, and remains one of Sousa's best-known works. In 1893,

1062-511: A front-page story which advertised the location at which white servicemen were planning to meet to carry out attacks on black Washingtonians. In 1929, financier Eugene Meyer , who had run the War Finance Corp. since World War I , secretly made an offer of $ 5 million for the Post, but he was rebuffed by Ned McLean. On June 1, 1933, Meyer bought the paper at a bankruptcy auction for $ 825,000 three weeks after stepping down as Chairman of

1180-477: A gently curving peninsula that extended 800 feet (240 m) into the western side of the lake. 1.3 million cubic yards (990,000 m) of fill would be used to raise the peninsula 35 feet (11 m) above the low water mark, so that the bridge's western approaches could be built on the new land. The Whitney Young Memorial Bridge opened in November 1955. Reclaimed land on the western shore of Kingman Lake became

1298-526: A halt. During this period, he lived at Halcyon House , on the corner at 3400 Prospect Street NW. Stoddert died on the 18th of December 1813 and is buried in the graveyard at Addison Chapel , Seat Pleasant, Maryland . In the Georgetown section of Washington, DC, there was a Stoddert Street named after Benjamin Stoddert. In the Georgetown street renaming of 1895 the name was changed to Q Street NW. An apartment building that today stands at 2900 Q Street NW

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1416-497: A major role in the resignation of President Richard Nixon , won the newspaper a Pulitzer Prize in 1973. In 1972, the "Book World" section was introduced with Pulitzer Prize-winning critic William McPherson as its first editor. It featured Pulitzer Prize-winning critics such as Jonathan Yardley and Michael Dirda , the latter of whom established his career as a critic at the Post . In 2009, after 37 years, with great reader outcries and protest, The Washington Post Book World as

1534-492: A national audience. As of 2023, the Post  has 135,980 print subscribers and 2.5 million digital subscribers, both of which are the third-largest among U.S. newspapers after The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal . The Post was founded in 1877. In its early years, it went through several owners and struggled both financially and editorially. In 1933, financier Eugene Meyer purchased it out of bankruptcy in 1933 and revived its health and reputation; this work

1652-509: A new city airport could be built there. Two years later, the piers supporting the Benning Bridge were reconfigured to permit a dredge to pass between them. The existing piers (which were 26.5 feet (8.1 m) apart) were replaced with piers 30.5 feet (9.3 m) apart. The reconfiguration was exceptionally complex, as 92 percent of the city's electrical supply passed through cables carried by Benning Bridge. The new, large dredging ship Benning

1770-487: A place for bird watching, fishing, and for pedestrians to rest and view the marshes. The islands were home to more than 100 species of birds as well as mimosa trees , purple loosestrife , Queen Anne's lace , and turtles . The D.C. government turned over maintenance of the islands in 2009 to the nonprofit group Living Classrooms, and the city continued to plan for an environmental center and more trails. A few unusual accidents have occurred on Kingman Island. In October 1941,

1888-429: A pseudonym. His wife Agnes Ernst Meyer was a journalist from the other end of the spectrum politically. The Post ran many of her pieces including tributes to her personal friends John Dewey and Saul Alinsky . In 1946, Meyer was appointed head of World Bank , and he named his son-in-law Phil Graham to succeed him as Post publisher. The post-war years saw the developing friendship of Phil and Kay Graham with

2006-449: A series of individual stories..." He has been described as a "hands-off owner", holding teleconference calls with executive editor Martin Baron every two weeks. Bezos appointed Fred Ryan (founder and CEO of Politico ) to serve as publisher and chief executive officer. This signaled Bezos' intent to shift the Post to a more digital focus with a national and global readership. In 2015,

2124-531: A standalone insert was discontinued, the last issue being Sunday, February 15, 2009, along with a general reorganization of the paper, such as placing the Sunday editorials on the back page of the main front section rather than the "Outlook" section and distributing some other locally oriented "op-ed" letters and commentaries in other sections. However, book reviews are still published in the Outlook section on Sundays and in

2242-568: A story about his past ties to a phone hacking scandal, have further shaken the newsroom's morale. Lewis continues to grapple with declining revenue and audience on the business front, seeking strategies to regain subscribers lost since the Trump era. Later that month, the paper ran a story allegedly exposing a connection between incoming editor Robert Winnett and John Ford, a man who "admitted to an extensive career using deception and illegal means to obtain confidential information." Winnett withdrew from

2360-564: Is in Washington, D.C., and its suburbs in Maryland and Northern Virginia. The newspaper's 21 current foreign bureaus are in Baghdad , Beijing , Beirut , Berlin , Brussels , Cairo , Dakar , Hong Kong , Islamabad , Istanbul , Jerusalem , London , Mexico City , Moscow , Nairobi , New Delhi , Rio de Janeiro , Rome , Seoul , Tokyo , and Toronto . In November 2009, the newspaper announced

2478-455: Is named The Stoddert . In Landover, Maryland there is a residential street named after him. The Washington Post The Washington Post , locally known as The Post and, informally, WaPo or WP , is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. , the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington metropolitan area and has

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2596-675: The Los Angeles Times , and The Wall Street Journal . The Post has distinguished itself through its political reporting on the workings of the White House, Congress, and other aspects of the U.S. government. It is considered a newspaper of record in the U.S. The Washington Post does not print an edition for distribution away from the East Coast . In 2009, the newspaper ceased publication of its National Weekly Edition due to shrinking circulation. The majority of its newsprint readership

2714-649: The Navy Department Library due to instructions received from President Adams in a letter dated 31 March 1800. He left office in March 1801 to return to commercial life. Following his term as Secretary of the Navy, Stoddert's final years witnessed a decline in his fortunes: as Stoddert lost heavily in land speculation, Georgetown declined as a commercial center, and the Embargo and the War of 1812 brought American overseas trade to

2832-562: The Post for two years before selling it in 1905 to John Roll McLean , owner of the Cincinnati Enquirer . During the Wilson presidency, the Post was credited with the "most famous newspaper typo " in D.C. history according to Reason magazine; the Post intended to report that President Wilson had been "entertaining" his future-wife Mrs. Galt, but instead wrote that he had been "entering" Mrs. Galt. When McLean died in 1916, he put

2950-516: The Post moved from the building it owned at 1150 15th Street to a leased space three blocks away at One Franklin Square on K Street . Since 2014 the Post has launched an online personal finance section, a blog, and a podcast with a retro theme. The Post won the 2020 Webby People's Voice Award for News & Politics in the Social and Web categories. In 2017, the newspaper hired Jamal Khashoggi as

3068-533: The Post with two remaining local competitors, the Washington Star ( Evening Star ) and The Washington Daily News . In 1972, the two competitors merged, forming the Washington Star-News. Following Graham's death in 1963, control of The Washington Post Company passed to his wife, Katharine Graham (1917–2001), who was also Eugene Meyer's daughter. Few women had run prominent national newspapers in

3186-557: The Post 's average printed weekday circulation is 139,232, making it the third largest newspaper in the country by circulation. For many decades, the Post had its main office at 1150 15th Street NW. This real estate remained with Graham Holdings when the newspaper was sold to Jeff Bezos' Nash Holdings in 2013. Graham Holdings sold 1150 15th Street, along with 1515 L Street, 1523 L Street, and land beneath 1100 15th Street, for $ 159 million in November 2013. The Post continued to lease space at 1150 L Street NW. In May 2014, The Post leased

3304-562: The Watergate scandal and the 1974 resignation of President Richard Nixon . In October 2013, the Graham family sold the newspaper to Nash Holdings , a holding company owned by Jeff Bezos , for $ 250 million. As of 2024, the newspaper had won the Pulitzer Prize 76 times for its work, the second-most of any publication after The New York Times . It is considered a newspaper of record in

3422-593: The $ 8 to $ 10 admission fee. Attempts to build Children's Island quickly became entangled with the stadium deal. On September 10, 1991, the Dixon administration agreed to let the Redskins organization build parking lots on Kingman and Heritage islands. By March 1992, this agreement had been scaled back, so that the Redskins were permitted to build on only a portion of Kingman Island, while additional parking would be built on Langston Golf Course (which would be redesigned to accommodate

3540-539: The 1960s, although few were adopted. A second concrete span for Benning Bridge was constructed in 1961; the old span now carried eastbound traffic, while the new span carried only westbound traffic. In 1961, the NCPPC proposed filling in 59 acres (24 ha) of Kingman Lake (about 50 to 60 percent of the lake's total area) and relocating some of the riprap walls to make Islands 3 and 4 part of the mainland and add an additional 19 acres (7.7 ha) to Langston Golf Course. This plan

3658-446: The Anacostia River at the present site of Ethel Kennedy Bridge. The bridge was sold Thomas Ewell, who in the 1820s sold it to William Benning. Thereafter the structure was known as Benning's Bridge (or Benning Bridge). The wooden bridge was rebuilt several times after 1805. This included construction of a steel bridge in 1892. The construction of Benning and other bridges and the diversion of inflowing streams to agricultural use also slowed

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3776-516: The Anacostia River in 1814 during the War of 1812 . Both Kingman Island and Heritage Island were completed in 1916. In 1915, ownership of the newly created land became an issue in a lawsuit. The boundary of the District of Columbia had been set by the Black-Jenkins Award, a decision by an arbitration panel in 1874 which resolved centuries of dispute by placing Virginia's boundary with Maryland at

3894-542: The D.C. stadium deal. Congressional opposition rose significantly after the stadium's chief proponent, D.C. City Council Chairman John A. Wilson , committed suicide on May 19, 1993. By December, Redskins owner Jack Kent Cooke had pledged to build his stadium in Maryland. The land transfer became the subject of a legal battle, which eventually led to congressional action. In August 1993, the Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund filed suit to block it, claiming that

4012-511: The Federal Reserve . He had bid anonymously, and was prepared to go up to $ 2 million, far higher than the other bidders. These included William Randolph Hearst , who had long hoped to shut down the ailing Post to benefit his own Washington newspaper presence. The Post 's health and reputation were restored under Meyer's ownership. In 1946, he was succeeded as publisher by his son-in-law, Philip Graham . Meyer eventually gained

4130-579: The Interior Manuel Lujan Jr. forced Mayor Dixon to agree to preserve Langston Golf Course (although Lujan did agree to allow a redesign of the facility to accommodate some stadium parking). A renewed effort to build a children's theme park emerged during this period as well. In 1983, a new company, National Children's Island, Inc., was formed to act as the new developer. In 1991, the company proposed yet another large children-oriented theme park for Kingman and Heritage islands. Mayor Dixon supported

4248-479: The Interior allowing the District government to retain ownership of Kingman and Heritage islands, even though the children's theme park had not been built. Under the agreement, the District of Columbia agreed to make improvements to the islands, provide police patrols on both islands, and conduct studies on how to best utilize the area. The city budgeted $ 500,000 for the capital improvement effort, which included rebuilding

4366-696: The Kennedys, the Bradlees and the rest of the " Georgetown Set", including many Harvard University alumni that would color the Post's political orientation. Kay Graham's most memorable Georgetown soirée guest list included British diplomat and communist spy Donald Maclean . The Post is credited with coining the term " McCarthyism " in a 1950 editorial cartoon by Herbert Block . Depicting buckets of tar, it made fun of Sen. Joseph McCarthy 's "tarring" tactics, i.e., smear campaigns and character assassination against those targeted by his accusations. Sen. McCarthy

4484-552: The National Park Service. The Park Service also proposed extending East Capitol Street onto the reclaimed land and then over the Anacostia River, and building a complex of sports stadiums, an armory, an outdoor theater, a swimming pool, an ice skating rink, and athletic fields on the flats. Legislation proposing a bridge across Kingman Island and stadium complex in Anacostia Park was submitted to Congress, which did not act on

4602-470: The Potomac River not only belonged to the District of Columbia but to the federal government (contrary to the claims of private landowners, who believed the property belonged to them). In Maryland v. West Virginia , 217 U. S. 1 (1910), the U.S. Supreme Court again affirmed that Maryland's southern border extended to the low-water mark on the far side of the Potomac River. The issue arose again in 1915, when

4720-589: The Style section the rest of the week, as well as online. In 1975, the pressmen's union went on strike . The Post hired replacement workers to replace the pressmen's union, and other unions returned to work in February 1976. Donald E. Graham , Katharine's son, succeeded her as a publisher in 1979. In 1995, the domain name washingtonpost.com was purchased. That same year, a failed effort to create an online news repository called Digital Ink launched. The following year it

4838-499: The U.S. Post journalists have received 18 Nieman Fellowships and 368 White House News Photographers Association awards. The paper is well known for its political reporting and is one of the few remaining American newspapers to operate foreign bureaus , with international breaking news hubs in London and Seoul . The Washington Post is regarded as one of the leading daily American newspapers along with The New York Times ,

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4956-544: The United States. In her autobiography, Katharine Graham described her own anxiety and lack of confidence when she stepped into a leadership role. She served as publisher from 1969 to 1979. Graham took The Washington Post Company public on June 15, 1971, in the midst of the Pentagon Papers controversy. A total of 1,294,000 shares were offered to the public at $ 26 per share. By the end of Graham's tenure as CEO in 1991,

5074-608: The Vietnam War in 1971 when it published the Pentagon Papers . In the mid-1970s, some conservatives referred to the Post as " Pravda on the Potomac " because of its perceived left-wing bias in both reporting and editorials. Since then, the appellation has been used by both liberal and conservative critics of the newspaper. In the PBS documentary Buying the War , journalist Bill Moyers said in

5192-518: The War. In 1902, Berryman published another famous cartoon in the Post – Drawing the Line in Mississippi . This cartoon depicts President Theodore Roosevelt showing compassion for a small bear cub and inspired New York store owner Morris Michtom to create the teddy bear. Wilkins acquired Hatton's share of the newspaper in 1894 at Hatton's death. After Wilkins' death in 1903, his sons John and Robert ran

5310-682: The Washington Steel & Ordnance Company claimed it owned the newly created land in the Anacostia River created by the dredging operation. The District of Columbia Supreme Court held on December 29, 1915, that the federal government held title to the land. But this decision was overturned on technical grounds by the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia in Washington Steel & Ordnance Company v. Martin , 45 App. 600 (1917). Nonetheless, in dicta in Washington Steel & Ordnance Company ,

5428-467: The acquisition. The combined newspaper was published from the Globe Building as The Washington Post and Union beginning on April 15, 1878, with a circulation of 13,000. The Post and Union name was used about two weeks until April 29, 1878, returning to the original masthead the following day. In 1889, Hutchins sold the newspaper to Frank Hatton , a former Postmaster General, and Beriah Wilkins ,

5546-473: The appointment of two white men to top editorial positions have sparked internal discontent, particularly given the lack of consideration for the Post's senior female editors. Additionally, Lewis' proposed division for social media and service journalism has met with resistance from staff. Recent reports alleging Lewis' attempts to influence editorial decisions, including pressuring NPR 's media correspondent to drop

5664-430: The bald eagle did not return until transplanted eaglets returned to the river as adults in 2004. The city finally extended East Capitol Street across the Anacostia River and Kingman Island in 1955. That 1934 proposal was finally approved by city and federal planners in 1949. Construction required that 650,000 cubic yards (500,000 m) of lake bottom be dredged from Kingman Lake and replaced with sand and gravel to create

5782-441: The body of a homeless African American man was found on the island. Police concluded that the man had been attacked and killed by a wild dog, and the body almost completely devoured. Attempts to capture the animal proved fruitless. A seven-year-old boy, which the local media dubbed the "Cold Crusoe" (after the fictional shipwrecked character of Robinson Crusoe ), was rescued from Island No. 3 in February 1956. The boy allegedly swam to

5900-414: The city limits. D.C. Mayor Sharon Pratt Dixon proposed allowing the Redskins to build a new stadium on the parking lots adjacent to RFK Stadium and replacing the lost parking lots with new ones built on Kingman Island—a proposal that included tearing up Langston Golf Course and turning it, too, into parking lots. In 1991, as the District still struggled to craft a deal to build a new stadium, Secretary of

6018-406: The city's agreements to build Children's Island. The Control Board said the project would cost too much and was not financially viable. The decision was the first time the panel overturned a decision by city officials. On September 15, 1998, the wooden footbridge from the western shore to Kingman Island was set afire by vandals around 9:00 p.m., and burned for about two and a half hours. Despite

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6136-465: The closure of three U.S. regional bureaus in Chicago , Los Angeles and New York City , as part of an increased focus on Washington, D.C. –based political stories and local news. The newspaper has local bureaus in Maryland (Annapolis, Montgomery County, Prince George's County, and Southern Maryland) and Virginia (Alexandria, Fairfax, Loudoun County, Richmond, and Prince William County). As of March 2023,

6254-484: The company had performed none of the studies required by the 1993 Council vote. The delay doomed the project. In 1995, Congress had imposed a Financial Control Board on the D.C. government in an attempt to help the city avoid impending bankruptcy. The Control Board had the power to override decisions made by the mayor and city council. On March 5, 1999, the Financial Control Board exercised that power and voided

6372-421: The conflict resulted from a combination of Stoddert's administrative skill in deploying his limited forces and the initiative of his seagoing officers. Under Stoddert's leadership, the reestablished United States Navy acquitted itself well and achieved its goal of stopping the depredations of French ships against American commerce. Stoddert concerned himself with the Navy's daily administration and operations and

6490-511: The court of appeals made note of the Supreme Court's ruling in Morris v. United States and held that the reclaimed land belonged to the federal government. The issue as to who owned the dredged land and islands seemed settled. By 1920, the Corps of Engineers had dropped the dam idea and instead proposed creating a 6-foot (1.8 m) deep lake on one side of the Anacostia River by linking several of

6608-405: The efforts of 50 firefighters and a fire boat, most of the structure burned and collapsed into Kingman Lake. Since 1999, a variety of proposals have been made for Kingman and Heritage islands, most focusing on retaining the islands' character as one of the few remaining wild places within the city's limits. In December 2000, D.C. Mayor Anthony A. Williams signed an agreement with the Department of

6726-400: The end of 2020 and was set to lose $ 100 million in 2023, according to The New York Times . The layoffs prompted Dan Froomkin of Presswatchers to suggest that the decline in readership could be reversed by focusing on the rise of authoritarianism (in a fashion similar to the role the Post played during the Watergate scandal ) instead of staying strictly neutral, which Froomkin says places

6844-426: The entire company revenue stream. Executive editor Ben Bradlee put the newspaper's reputation and resources behind reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein , who, in a long series of articles, chipped away at the story behind the 1972 burglary of Democratic National Committee offices in the Watergate complex in Washington. The Post 's dogged coverage of the story, the outcome of which ultimately played

6962-501: The failure of the project to a decision by Congress and the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development to withhold funds for the project. District officials built a fence around the shores of Kingman and Heritage Island in the early 1980s to protect them from illegal dumping and vandalism, but the fences did not work. Businesses and members of the public dumped discarded construction materials and other waste on

7080-565: The federal government or private landowners had title to the marshes themselves. The survey work was complete by November 1905, with the U.S. government asserting ownership over the flats. In June 1912, Congress appropriated $ 100,000 to dredge the Anacostia from the 11th Street Bridges to the District-Maryland line. In June 1915, the dredges discovered two large anchors with many feet of chain attached to them. The anchors were believed to have come from United States Navy gunboat barges burned on

7198-520: The federal government was required to conduct an environmental impact assessment before handing over the land. The group's interest in Kingman and Heritage islands was environmental: The lack of development and the wilderness-like aspect of the two islands had made them important to wildlife in the area. According to an Audubon Society survey at the time, more than 60 species of birds—including blue herons , eagles , snowy egrets , and ospreys —now lived on

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7316-464: The federal government. In May 1798, President John Adams appointed Stoddert, a loyal Federalist , to oversee the newly established Department of the Navy . As the first Secretary of the Navy , Stoddert soon found himself dealing with an undeclared naval war with France , which would come to be known as the Quasi-War . Stoddert realized that the infant U.S. Navy possessed too few warships to protect

7434-404: The flats were unsanitary. Health officials also feared that the flats were a prime breeding ground for malaria - and yellow fever -carrying mosquitoes . By 1876, a large mudflat had formed immediately south of Benning Bridge and another flat some 740 feet (230 m) wide had developed south of that. By 1883, a stream named "Succabel's Gut" traversed the upper flat and another dubbed "Turtle Gut"

7552-552: The idea, but Interior Secretary Lujan forced her to drop the idea because Interior officials felt the proposed development was too densely built-up and would destroy the character of the region. The company drew up new proposals in August 1991 that provided for fewer attractions. Its new designs provided for a "family-oriented" park with walking trails and meadows (with only about 5 acres (2.0 ha) used for buildings and exhibits). Access to Kingman Island would be restricted to those who paid

7670-501: The island using a log as a raft. With no sign of a boat, police believed the boy had drowned. After several days, the police finally located the child (who revealed how he got to the island). And in 1959, a 13-year-old boy in a stolen automobile plunged into Kingman Lake while being chased by police. The boy later said he had no idea the lake was there. Benjamin Stoddert Benjamin Stoddert (1751 – 18 December 1813)

7788-458: The islands be submitted to the council for approval. The council also required the company to complete an environmental impact assessment and more than a dozen other studies and present them to the council before any development could proceed. Meanwhile, the loss of parking space to the children's theme park and rising Congressional opposition to the stadium deal (primarily due to the impact it would have on local residents and its high costs) imperiled

7906-413: The islands, and constructing meadows, footpaths, canoe tie-ups, and a playground on Kingman Island at a cost of $ 3 million. More recent efforts have focused on turning Kingman and Heritage islands into nature centers. The islands were closed to the public in 2004 as improvements were made and trash removed. In 2005, Mayor Williams proposed turning the two islands into a formal wildlife refuge and building

8024-474: The islands, and homeless people often tried to live there. In 1986, D.C. officials considered building a new District of Columbia Jail on Kingman Island, but the National Park Service still controlled the island and refused to consider the idea. Two years later, the District of Columbia was looking for a way to upgrade RFK Stadium so that the Washington Redskins would continue to play their games inside

8142-574: The islands. In December 1994, a United States district court agreed, and said the Park Service had violated the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) by transferring the land without conducting the assessment. D.C. officials sought the assistance of Congress. In July 1996, after a two-year lobbying effort, Congress passed the "National Children's Island Act of 1996" (P.L. 104–163, 110 Stat. 1416), which bypassed NEPA and transferred

8260-453: The land to the District of Columbia. The legislation specified, however, that the city could use the land only for a children's park. Congress acted after National Children's Island, Inc., unveiled plans for a scaled-back, $ 150 million development which was characterized as a "mini- Epcot Center ". The company said it would begin construction within 14 months of the passage of the legislation. The project again caused significant controversy, but

8378-572: The last laugh over Hearst, who had owned the old Washington Times and the Herald before their 1939 merger that formed the Times-Herald . This was in turn bought by and merged into the Post in 1954. The combined paper was officially named The Washington Post and Times-Herald until 1973, although the Times-Herald portion of the nameplate became less and less prominent over time. The merger left

8496-405: The lots). The parking deal helped clinch the stadium agreement: On December 7, 1992, Redskins owner Jack Kent Cooke agreed to build his team's new stadium in the District of Columbia. Seven days later, Interior Secretary Lujan agreed to transfer 50 acres (20 ha) of Kingman Island to the District of Columbia for construction of the children's theme park. By now, National Children's Island, Inc.,

8614-519: The low-water mark on the Virginia side of the Potomac River. The Virginia retrocession of 1846-1847 returned a portion of the District of Columbia on the Virginia site of the Potomac River to the state of Virginia. This left in doubt the exact position of the District's border with Virginia. In Morris v. United States , 174 U.S. 196 (1899), the Supreme Court of the United States held that land built in

8732-567: The lower, and almost all flats on the river hosted substantial populations of American lotus , lily pads , and wild rice . In 1898, officials with the United States Army Corps of Engineers and the District of Columbia convinced the United States Congress that the Anacostia River should be dredged to create a more commercially viable channel that would enhance the local economy. The dredged material would be used to build up

8850-405: The mainland by wooden footbridges. Some land was cleared, and a few brick footpaths laid down. Plans for the park soon included several playgrounds, undeveloped areas where children could learn about nature, a stage, and a worm farm . The Army Corps of Engineers itself erected a wooden footbridge connecting the shore to Heritage Island and Heritage Island to Kingman Island. The size of the theme park

8968-477: The marshes—drying them out and eliminating the public health dangers they caused, as well as creating land where factories or warehouses might be built. Although the height of the reclaimed land would vary from 14 feet (4.3 m) to 24 feet (7.3 m) (the amount of dredged material depended on how much money was appropriated), the Corps of Engineers hoped to reclaim mudflats from Pennsylvania Avenue SE north to at least Benning Bridge. Decisions on how to use

9086-413: The memorial grove, and environmental groups were working to raise additional money for more plantings and for maintenance. Over the next several years, the city said, it anticipated planting more than 2,000 trees in the grove, adding a memorial marker, and creating a nearby meadow for children to play in. In 2003, the Corps of Engineers said it would assist the city by replacing non-native trees and plants on

9204-508: The mid-river islands it had built with dikes. That same year, Congress specifically prohibited the Corps from extending Anacostia Park beyond Benning Bridge, which forced the Corps to drop its plans for a drawbridge. In late 1922, dredging temporarily ceased after funding for continued dredging ran out. In 1926, the National Aeronautic Association proposed filling in all or part of Kingman Lake to expand Kingman Island so that

9322-513: The new President Lyndon B. Johnson , "I don't have much influence with the Post because I frankly don't read it. I view it like the Daily Worker ." Ben Bradlee became the editor-in-chief in 1968, and Kay Graham officially became the publisher in 1969, paving the way for the aggressive reporting of the Pentagon Papers and Watergate scandals . The Post strengthened public opposition to

9440-591: The newly created land occurred over the next few years. In 1900, the United States Senate established the McMillan Commission , a body to advise the Congress and District of Columbia on ways to improve the parks, monuments, memorials, and infrastructure of the city as well as plan for urban renewal, economic growth, and expansion of the federal government. The McMillan Commission concluded that commercial land

9558-452: The newspaper in a trust, having little faith that his playboy son Edward "Ned" McLean could manage it as part of his inheritance. Ned went to court and broke the trust, but, under his management, the newspaper slumped toward ruin. He bled the paper for his lavish lifestyle and used it to promote political agendas. During the Red Summer of 1919 the Post supported the white mobs and even ran

9676-551: The newspaper moved to a building at 14th and E streets NW, where it would remain until 1950. This building combined all functions of the newspaper into one headquarters – newsroom, advertising, typesetting, and printing – that ran 24 hours per day. In 1898, during the Spanish–American War , the Post printed Clifford K. Berryman 's classic illustration Remember the Maine , which became the battle-cry for American sailors during

9794-402: The newspaper's coverage during the run-up to the 2008 presidential election , former Post ombudsman Deborah Howell wrote: "The opinion pages have strong conservative voices; the editorial board includes centrists and conservatives; and there were editorials critical of Obama. Yet opinion was still weighted toward Obama." According to a 2009 Oxford University Press book by Richard Davis on

9912-531: The number of active vessels were reduced. The Jefferson Administration reduced active naval strength to three frigates (twelve were built between 1797 and 1800) and sold off or used the collected supplies in the Navy Yards for gunboat construction. This policy left the United States unprepared to respond to the later threats of the Barbary pirates and failed to prevent war with England in 1812 . Stoddert established

10030-433: The organization would embrace artificial intelligence to improve the paper's financial situation, telling staff it would seek "AI everywhere in our newsroom." In June 2024, Axios reported the Post faced significant internal turmoil and financial challenges. The new CEO, Lewis, has already generated controversy with his leadership style and proposed restructuring plans. The abrupt departure of executive editor Buzbee and

10148-420: The paper into an undistinguished secondary role in competition with other contemporary media. As part of the shift in tone, in 2023 the paper closed down the "KidsPost" column for children, the "Skywatch" astronomy column, and the "John Kelly's Washington" column about local history and sights, which had been running under different bylines since 1947. In May 2024, CEO and publisher William Lewis announced that

10266-480: The park off the ground. City officials began informally calling the Kingman Island "National Children's Island" in order to support the park's developers. The city also leased the southern part of Kingman Island from the United States Department of the Interior to spur the development. A small administration building and a children's playhouse were built, 100 cherry trees planted, and Islands No. 3 and 4 connected to

10384-547: The park plan in 1928. The original dredging plan called for a channel 15 feet (4.6 m) wide on the Anacostia's west bank from the 11th Street Bridges to Massachusetts Avenue SE , narrowing to a 9-foot (2.7 m) wide channel from Massachusetts Avenue SE to the Maryland -District border line. In addition to this channel (which was meant to facilitate the passage of cargo ships), the McMillan Commission proposed building

10502-465: The position shortly thereafter. In 1933, financier Eugene Meyer bought the bankrupt Post , and assured the public that neither he nor the newspaper would be beholden to any political party. But as a leading Republican who had been appointed Chairman of the Federal Reserve by Herbert Hoover in 1930, his opposition to Roosevelt 's New Deal colored the paper's editorials and news coverage, including editorializing news stories written by Meyer under

10620-459: The proposal in December. The project was proposed again in August 1948, because dredged material was still being placed on Kingman Island to build it up and large portions of the island remained undeveloped. In 1946, the last pair of bald eagles on the Anacostia River abandoned their nest on Kingman Island. Although a bird watcher claimed to have seen a bald eagle nest on the Anacostia River in 1988,

10738-400: The proposals. The first nine holes of Langston Golf Course were built on the north end of Kingman Island in 1939, and the back nine on the lake's western shore in 1955. Work on the islands stopped in 1941 due to budgetary and resource shortages associated with the advent of World War II . In August 1947, construction of an airport on Kingman Island was again proposed, but the NCPPC disapproved

10856-425: The river's current, allowing much of the silt to settle and be deposited. Between 1860 and the late 1880s, large mudflats ("the Anacostia flats") formed on both banks of the Anacostia River due to this deforestation and runoff. At this time, the city allowed its sewage to pour untreated into the Anacostia. Marsh grass began growing in the flats, trapping the sewage and leading public health experts to conclude that

10974-436: The service's future strength. He established the first six navy yards and advocated building twelve 74 gun ships of the line . Congress initially approved construction of these ships in 1799. A design was prepared by Joshua Humphrey , who had prepared the initial designs for the 44 gun frigates of 1797 and lumber collected at the new Navy Yard. Following the peace accord with France, the U.S. Navy's personnel strength and

11092-537: The site of RFK Stadium in 1957. D.C. officials, who had been seeking a site for a large all-purpose sports stadium since the early 1930s, finally won support from the U.S. House of Representatives for a stadium at Anacostia Park in January 1957. D.C. Commissioners approved the site a few days after the House vote, and the District of Columbia Stadium (renamed Robert F. Kennedy Stadium in 1968) opened in 1961. A number of development proposals were made for Kingman Island throughout

11210-417: The stock was worth $ 888 per share, not counting the effect of an intermediate 4:1 stock split. Graham also oversaw the Post company's diversification purchase of the for-profit education and training company Kaplan, Inc. for $ 40 million in 1984. Twenty years later, Kaplan had surpassed the Post newspaper as the company's leading contributor to income, and by 2010 Kaplan accounted for more than 60% of

11328-708: The transfer. However, various other groups were opposed to the theme park development, including several Advisory Neighborhood Commissions , the Anacostia Watershed Society, the Capitol Hill Restoration Society, and the Committee of 100 on the Federal City (a highly influential businesspersons' and civic leaders' organization). The D.C. City Council nonetheless approved the land transfer on July 13, 1993, although it also required that any plans for

11446-732: The two islands over to the Anacostia Waterfront Corporation , which was managing the Initiative at the time, and in May 2007 legislation to turn the islands over to the corporation's successor was introduced in the City Council. The legislation passed and was signed into law. Just four months later, the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development announced that proceeds from

11564-572: The war, while contrary information got lost". On March 23, 2007, Chris Matthews said on his television program, " The Washington Post is not the liberal newspaper it was [...] I have been reading it for years and it is a neocon newspaper". It has regularly published a mixture of op-ed columnists, with some of them left-leaning (including E. J. Dionne , Dana Milbank , Greg Sargent, and Eugene Robinson ), and some of them right-leaning (including George Will , Marc Thiessen , Michael Gerson and Charles Krauthammer ). Responding to criticism of

11682-617: The west tower of One Franklin Square , a high-rise building at 1301 K Street NW in Washington, D.C. Mary Jordan was the founding editor, head of content, and moderator for Washington Post Live , The Post's editorial events business, which organizes political debates, conferences and news events for the media company, including "The 40th Anniversary of Watergate" in June 2012 that featured key Watergate figures including former White House counsel John Dean , Washington Post editor Ben Bradlee , and reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein , which

11800-521: The wooden footbridge to the shore. The federal government and the city both agreed to spend $ 12 million on the study efforts. One of the improvements made was the planting and dedication, in September 2002, of a grove of trees on Kingman Island as a memorial to the lives lost in the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on New York City and The Pentagon . The United States Forest Service pledged $ 160,000 to

11918-538: The year prior to the Iraq War there were 27 editorials supporting the Bush administration 's desire to invade Iraq. National security correspondent Walter Pincus reported that he had been ordered to cease his reports that were critical of the administration. According to author and journalist Greg Mitchell : "By the Post 's own admission, in the months before the war, it ran more than 140 stories on its front page promoting

12036-560: Was advocating a $ 120 million park which would include science, nature, and geography pavilions; an entertainment building; a plaza that would host fairs, marketplace booths, and outdoor performances; a science center; and formal gardens—while still preserving much of the two islands as a nature preserve. Under terms of the agreement transferring the land to the city, no more than 5 acres (2.0 ha) could be utilized for buildings, and no structure could be taller than 50 feet (15 m). The National Capital Planning Commission quickly approved of

12154-447: Was also expanded to include Heritage Island. But four years and $ 4 million of public and private funds later, the proposal was abandoned. City officials said in 1980 that deteriorating budget conditions (caused by the beginning of the early 1980s recession ) had led to "the worst budget crisis in the city's history", and officials could no longer justify spending another $ 4 million to complete the park. But 15 years later, press reports laid

12272-864: Was attempting to do for the Senate what the House Un-American Activities Committee had been doing for years—investigating Soviet espionage in America . The HUAC made Richard Nixon nationally known for his role in the Hiss / Chambers case that exposed communist spying in the State Department . The committee had evolved from the McCormack - Dickstein Committee of the 1930s. Phil Graham's friendship with John F. Kennedy remained strong until their deaths in 1963. FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover reportedly told

12390-473: Was continued by his successors Katharine and Phil Graham , Meyer's daughter and son-in-law, respectively, who bought out several rival publications. The Post 's 1971 printing of the Pentagon Papers helped spur opposition to the Vietnam War . Reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein led the investigation into the break-in at the Democratic National Committee , which developed into

12508-512: Was elected President , he asked Stoddert to purchase key parcels of land in the area that would become the nation's capital before the formal decision to establish the federal city on the banks of the Potomac drove up prices there. Stoddert then transferred the parcels to the government. During the 1790s, he also helped found the Bank of Columbia to handle purchases of land in the District of Columbia for

12626-484: Was eventually terminated. In early October 1997, D.C. Mayor Marion Barry proposed legislation giving National Children's Island, Inc., a 99-year lease on Kingman and Heritage islands. Although it initially appeared that the legislation would pass quickly, opposition from the Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund led several Council members to withdraw their support for the lease. Opponents pointed out, too, that

12744-407: Was founded in 1877 by Stilson Hutchins (1838–1912); in 1880, it added a Sunday edition, becoming the city's first newspaper to publish seven days a week. In April 1878, about four months into publication, The Washington Post purchased The Washington Union , a competing newspaper which was founded by John Lynch in late 1877. The Union had only been in operation about six months at the time of

12862-513: Was held at the Watergate hotel. Regular hosts include Frances Stead Sellers . Lois Romano was formerly the editor of Washington Post Live . The Post has its own exclusive Zip Code , 20071. Arc XP is a department of The Washington Post , which provides a publishing system and software for news organizations such as the Chicago Tribune and the Los Angeles Times . The newspaper

12980-411: Was never acted on, and a year later the city proposed turning Kingman Island into a landfill. Two years later, the city proposed closing the first nine holes of Langston Golf Course and building a $ 10 million public aquarium on the site, but the National Park Service refused to turn over the land to the city. In 1965, the city again asked permission to turn Kingman Island into a landfill. Although this plan

13098-425: Was not approved, the city did begin dumping environmental trash (such as grass cuttings, leaves, and tree stumps) on Kingman Island at this time. Four years later, the city proposed closing all of Langston Golf Course and building extensive low-income public housing on the golf course and the rest of Kingman Island. Turning Kingman and Heritage Islands into a children's theme park was a major development proposal which

13216-611: Was not needed and proposed turning the reclaimed flats into parkland . The D.C. government agreed in 1905, and the United States Commission of Fine Arts (a federal advisory agency with review authority over the design and aesthetics of projects within Washington, D.C.) and the Army Corps of Engineers concurred in 1914. Most of the reclaimed mudflats were subsequently declared to be parkland and named Anacostia Water Park (now Anacostia Park ) in 1919. The National Capital Park and Planning Commission (NCPPC) signed on (belatedly) to

13334-400: Was renamed Graham Holdings shortly after the sale. Nash Holdings, which includes the Post , is operated separately from technology company Amazon , which Bezos founded and where he is as of 2022 executive chairman and the largest single shareholder, with 12.7% of voting rights. Bezos said he has a vision that recreates "the 'daily ritual' of reading the Post as a bundle, not merely

13452-541: Was severely injured in the Battle of Brandywine and was subsequently released from active military service. In 1781, he married Rebecca Lowndes, daughter of Christopher Lowndes , a Maryland merchant, and they had eight children. They resided at the home of his father-in-law, Bostwick , located at Bladensburg, Maryland . In 1783, Stoddert established a tobacco export business in Georgetown , with business partners Uriah Forrest and John Murdock. After George Washington

13570-410: Was shut down and the first website was launched in June 1996. In August 2013, Jeff Bezos purchased The Washington Post and other local publications, websites, and real estate for US$ 250   million , transferring ownership to Nash Holdings LLC, Bezos's private investment company. The paper's former parent company, which retained some other assets such as Kaplan and a group of TV stations,

13688-764: Was the first United States Secretary of the Navy from 1 May 1798 to 31 March 1801. Stoddert was born in Charles County, Maryland in 1751, the son of Captain Thomas Stoddert. He was educated at the University of Pennsylvania and then worked as a merchant. He served as a captain in the Pennsylvania cavalry and later as secretary to the Continental Board of War during the American Revolutionary War . He

13806-487: Was under consideration for two decades before being abandoned. The idea was first proposed in 1967. The concept was revived in 1972 as part of the United States Bicentennial celebrations, and included a $ 3 million playground and arts facility for children (including special areas for the handicapped). The American Revolution Bicentennial Commission gave the backers of the plan a $ 30,000 planning grant to help get

13924-512: Was used to dredge the upper part of the Anacostia River, and some of the fill from this operation was used to create two new islands in Kingman Lake, named Island No. 3 (3 acres (1.2 ha) in size) and Island No. 4 (4 acres (1.6 ha) in size). In 1934, Benning Bridge was rebuilt as a beam bridge on concrete piers. That same year, the Corps of Engineers transferred ownership of Anacostia Park, Kingman and Heritage islands, and Kingman Lake to

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